Desperate and Ravenous
by carrieberry.xo
Summary: Kagura felt trapped in her mundane job and every day seemed to mimic the last. She was used to people coming and gong throughout her life, never holding any real meaning to her. One day, all of that changed, and her monotonous existence spat her into a whole new territory of love, friendship, and tragedy. Rated MA 3rd Genre: Comedy(Title changed due to many similar fanfic titles)
1. Introduction

Kagura's afternoon was proving to be as listless as she imagined it would be. Hell, the most excitement she had felt in weeks was her anticipation for her favorite time of year approaching: fall. Many things drew her to what most viewed as the dreariest season of all. The sky was visibly darker, giving her a break from the harsh sunshine that assaulted her ruby red eyes and porcelain white skin. She often got stuck, staring in awe at the contrasting colors of the leaves changing. She was envious, in a somewhat morbid way, of how nature clung to beauty even in death. The crisp autumn wind, however, was what she admired the most. There was a certain sharpness to it that she craved in its absence. She loved the way it whipped her long, dark brown hair in an almost playful manner. If was fitting, seeing as how she was a wind sorceress, herself.

Her head was propped up on her left hand, with her elbow resting uncomfortably on top of her desk. She subconsciously waved her right hand in one sweeping motion in front of her. A sudden breeze swept away a stack of papers from the desk she'd been sitting behind all morning. One paper floated astray and landed neatly in a trash bin of the office across from hers. She didn't feel the slightest incentive to retrieve it. A familiar voice called out, snapping her out of her boredom induced trance.

"Um, do you want this back?" said her confused co-worker, Kagome. The cheery young girl pulled the paper out of the bin next to her desk and examined it.

"Have I high-lighted anything on it?" Kagura asked, dryly.

"No.. but this is time stamped for today's date. Are you already done editing all these? Naraku always gives you more work than me, and I'm only halfway through. N-not that I doubt your abilities," she replied in a concerned tone.

"Just toss it," Kagura sighed.

It was certainly cruel that the likes of a wind demon be made to work in a stuffy office for 8 hours a day. Her unfortunate setting was coupled with an even more unfortunate job: newspaper editor-in-chief. She had the responsibility of editing the stories that were to be published, and also deciding which ones didn't make the cut. To make matters worse, her boss Naraku was an ignorant, vile man. A few months ago, Kagura had come to work after barely an hour of sleep and accidentally allowed a slew of errors to pass through the network and make their way to Naraku. Her neighbor's caterwauling feline was to blame, not that she cared to offer an excuse. Although he caught the mistake and the errors were never published, he accused her of being too imbecilic to use human-made technology and temporarily "suspended" her use of it. She didn't know when she would be allowed to use a computer again. This seemed to be an unfair abuse of power, but Kagura knew better than to dispute it. He had connections upon connections in this town, particularly with the corrupt police department. Not to mention he was the publisher of the Baltimore Sun. One wrong move from Kagura and he could tarnish her reputation, or even have what little freedom she had stolen from her. The threat wasn't just assumed; he had told her these exact words more times than she cared to recall.

Anyhow, he at least assigned her an assistant, Kagome, to help bear the weight of all the paperwork she'd have to sort through. It was later discovered that he was merely attracted to the young girl and hired her on the spot before interviewing anyone else. He often talked about how she looked like one of his previous lovers. Kagura snarled at the thought of him slithering around the poor girl's desk like a snake waiting to strike. She was naive and overbearingly positive, the opposite of Kagura. She was a good enough assistant, though.

The rest of the day seemed to move like a coin sinking through jello. Kagura glanced at the cheap, black and white clock that hung high next to the door to her office. _4:28.. only two minutes left._ She watched the next 60 seconds tick by through half-closed eyelids.

Rubbing her temples, she asked, "Hey, Kagome, you busy?"

"No, just finishing up. I only have 13 pages left to print for your review and we're done for the day. If you want, I'll finish off the work. You really don't look so good. I feel like you work so much harder than I do!" she exclaimed.

"Hmph, as if I'd leave you here to be preyed on by Naraku." Kagura smirked at the girl in an attempt to ease her worry. "You go ahead and pack up to leave, lest that ill-tempered boyfriend of yours storms in here to retrieve you."

Kagome blushed. "It's okay, I'll stay to help. And I've told you already, he isn't my boyfriend, just a friend. We're just bound to each other now, is all. Besides, someone has to feed him properly." A soft smile came across her lips. Kagura couldn't help but giggle at the girl's loving expression.

* * *

She'd met Inuyasha, the 'friend', the very first day Kagome had been hired as her assistant. Kagura had escorted the young girl outside at the end of that day after seeing Naraku's disgusting tongue lick his lips while silently watching the girl work. Kagome was naive and saw nothing wrong with flouncing about in her green mini skirt in front of this man. She wore a white button up shirt tucked into it that didn't add any modesty to the attire. She had on a bright red bra underneath it and had no undershirt to keep the loud color concealed. Kagura made haste in getting her out of the hallway of offices, bee-lining for the exit. Before they could make it out of the double glass doors completely, a flash of red whipped towards them from across the street and stopped in front of Kagome, making both women jump backwards. Kagura was on guard at this point, ready to rip whatever it was apart with her winds for startling her. She calmed down when she saw Kagome smile and place a hand on her hip.

"Inuyasha, that wasn't polite at all! You scared my boss on my very first day!" she yelled, wagging a finger at him.

"That's all the damn thanks I get for coming all the way here to pick you up?! And you," he snapped at Kagura, "just what the fuck are you lookin' at, wench?"

"Wench?" she let out a laugh.

She lifted a loose fist and gently flicked her fingers towards him in a shooing gesture. A strong gust of wind knocked him across the busy street, soaring him high enough over traffic to avoid any accidents. His back landed firmly against a light pole and he quickly slid to the ground. She realized she was probably overreacting. Still, she couldn't have been the first person to gawk at the boy's pointy, puppy-dog ears. With a shake of his head, was back in front of them as suddenly as he had been whisked away by her powerful wind.

"SIT!" Kagome exclaimed. The boy smashed to the pavement face first, just before his hands had made it to Kagura. "Can't you go a single day without being nasty to anyone? Honestly, today was my first day of work and you don't even have the decency to ask me how it went," Kagome said with a shaky voice.

Kagura decided to play nice. This was definitely the weirdest shit she'd seen in a long time and it provided much needed entertainment.

"I apologize for attacking you, dog demon," she said, trying to sound believable.

"Heh, I'm not sorry. Don't cha have any manners? You can't just stare at someone like they're some kinda zoo animal!" he shouted, struggling to get back to his feet.

Kagura couldn't help but look back up at his fuzzy dog ears that had captured her attention before. They were the same silvery white color as his long, thick hair. It was much longer than Kagome's dark brown hair. He had it pulled back in a simple ponytail at the base of his neck. It beautifully contrasted with his golden eyes, black eyebrows, and deep red button up shirt in which the sleeves were pulled up to his elbows in a messy fashion. She noticed that while he was young, he couldn't have been much younger than herself. You can never tell with demons, though. She smelled a scent in him that made her realize he was only half demon. It was common knowledge amongst demons that mating with a human can only bring about an abomination, of sorts. The spawn was promised to live a life filled with judgement, torment from demons and humans alike, and unprovoked violence. Not to mention the fact that the vastly different bloods never mixed well, causing an issue with self control. She almost felt sorry for the cute mutt. Times had changed a great deal, sure, but living things are creatures of habit. And due to pureblood lineage conservation, medieval views were not in any way rare among the hierarchy of the demon community. Nonetheless, Kagura didn't care what he was or wasn't, so long as he kept his 18th century insults to himself.

"Inuyasha, was it?" Kagura asked, noticing she was drifting off in thought. He crossed his arms and nodded once, not looking her in the eye. "Well, it's been a pleasure chatting with you," she said, her words dripping with sarcasm. Kagome said her goodbyes and they parted ways. She could hear the half breed cursing as she walked to her car. She couldn't help smirking.

* * *

The two dark haired women had finally finished the last of their work at 5:44pm, over an hour behind schedule. Kagura thanked the gods that Naraku was tied up in the publisher's office doing something or another. She enjoyed ending her work days without having to hear the sound of his grizzly, condescending voice trailing behind her. When they made it outside, Kagura stretched her aching arms out and looked up to the sky, dropping them back down to her sides. There wasn't a cloud in sight. _How dull._

"See ya in the AM, Kagome," she said through a light yawn.

"Wait.. Inuyasha isn't here. He always meets me right here, even when I work late.." Kagome replied, sounding worried.

Kagura looked around. The girl was right. He was 'always' here to greet her. Not always cheerfully, but he had a reputation for his dependability. She wasn't sure why she hadn't noticed this detail herself. Maybe she was more self absorbed today. She knew without even looking at Kagome what the petite young woman would ask her next, so she decided to offer the proposal herself. In her mind, it redeemed her for not realizing the tremendous change in Kagome's routine.

"I'm sorry, I'll drive you home. Come with me." Kagura started towards the parking area, knowing her concerned assistant would follow.

"Are you sure? I don't want to bother you," Kagome replied, quickly finding her way to Kagura's heels. She had no other options, after all.

Kagura unlocked her black '98 Thunderbird and ushered the girl inside. The car ride was uncomfortably silent, aside from Kagome's sudden exclamations of "turn right!" and "no, sorry, I meant left!" Kagura was losing her patience. When they finally reached their destination, an interesting scene was awaiting them in the large yard in front of Kagome's house. It hadn't been as Kagura had expected. She'd pegged Kagome the type to have a tall white house with bright pink shutters and a white-picket fence, or something similarly childish. It was quite the opposite. There were two small, red rose bushes on either side of the front door to a cozy looking log cabin. It stood out on this road with a run down apartment complex that couldn't have housed more than 10 people being its only neighbor. The front yard had to have been at least a quarter of an acre large just by itself. There was no fence, no garage, no driveway. It was simplicity at its best. However, none of this had anything to do with the aforementioned 'interesting' part. Kagura pulled the car to the side of the street and put it in park.

There before them were two white haired men, with the lights from their immense energy surrounding them. She recognized Inuyasha right away. The other man resembled him, but his demonic power was leaps and bounds above Inuyasha's. She could sense another source of power that was stronger than both of theirs, but she didn't have much time to analyze the situation before the more powerful one disappeared from the very spot he'd been standing.

"Inuyasha!" yelled Kagome. He snapped his head towards them. His eyes widened when he noticed Kagome's presence.

The powerful demon had moved so quickly that he'd made the illusion of disappearance, and was now standing behind Inuyasha. He raised a hand in the air, extending his claws towards the unsuspecting boys back. Without thinking it through, Kagura sent an incredibly strong wind at the unknown demon. She didn't exactly consider Inuyasha a friend, but she admired his protective nature over Kagome. On another hand, if something happened to him, she'd feel obligated to carpool her young assistant to and from work.

The gust of strong wind knocked her target and Inuyasha both to their left, hurdling towards a small thresh of trees behind the cabin. The taller one stopped himself just before impact with a sturdy looking limb. Kagura watched with wide eyes as the demon changed direction and disappeared in a streak of light. _What the hell?_ Suddenly, she sensed a presence behind her. _Damn it._

"Is there a reason that you, a pathetic wind witch, dare to interfere in my affairs?" he said in a low voice.

Kagura turned to face him. _Wind witch? Ha, that's a new one._ His eyes were calm, showing no expression. He hadn't even broken a sweat. She studied his face, acknowledging the purple markings on his high cheekbones. The moon symbol on his forehead matched it in color. His eyes were solid gold, much like Inuyasha's, but different. They looked.. empty. His hair was a smooth silvery white and was pushed neatly behind his pointed ears, hanging down near his legs. She couldn't help but admire his features for a moment. He looked like a human statue, chiseled into perfection. Nonetheless, she didn't show any signs of weakness.

"As if I'd include myself in a quarrel between testosterone fueled mutts. I simply didn't want my life to be effected by that half breed being injured," she replied, mimicking his calm tone.

He raised an eyebrow then turned away from her. "I see," he stated, almost calmer than before. And in what seemed like an instant, he was gone.

Kagura let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding in. She was grateful for his departure, but she was confused as to what encouraged him to leave so suddenly. _Why act like a blood-thirsty hound one minute, then run away the next?_ She turned off her thoughts when she spotted a frantic, finger waving Kagome.

"You could've been seriously hurt! Why would you pick a fight with him while I'm away?! You big dummy! If it weren't for Kagura, who knows what may have happened to you!" she yelled, tears rolling down her face.

"Wow, glad you have so much faith in me," he hissed, putting an arm around the girl. "Let's just go inside."

Kagura was shocked that the temperamental boy hadn't gone after him. He interrupted her thought, looking over his shoulder to frown at her. It was understandable, considering she'd just sent him flying with her winds again. Still, he could've at least said thank you. _Ungrateful brat._ She followed them inside, regardless. Her main concern was getting answers about who the other dog demon was. It wasn't like Kagura to pry into people's personal affairs, but she couldn't help herself.


	2. Care for a drink?

The inside of the cabin was warm and inviting. Dark green, lace curtains hung down to the floor over the tall windows in the sitting room. There was a cast iron stove that sat catty-cornered in the back of the room, atop what appeared to be a homemade brick hearth. The decorations were modest, mainly paintings of animals and pictures of the couple with their assumed friends and family. The kitchen to the right of the room was closed off with a set of saloon style doors. Kagura noticed an open coat closet to her left at the front door. The hangers were jade elephant heads screwed into the top of all three walls inside with the trunks stuck out as hooks. Inuyasha plopped down hard on a dark brown, suede sofa where Kagome stood over him, inspecting him for wounds. Kagura took a step forward to join them but noticed she was still wearing shoes when the thin heel of her black, ankle high boot clanked against the hard wood floor. She quickly removed them and placed them on the faux block welcome mat in front of the door behind her.

"I already told ya, Kagome, he didn't get the Tetsusaiga and I'm fine! If ya really wanna help then make me some noodles or something before I starv-"

Kagura cut him off. "Inuyasha, I have some questions."

He narrowed his eyes at her. "Heh, you ain't the only one."

"Just what the hell does that mean? Tsk, nevermind. Who was that demon? And what's the Tetsusaiga?" she asked, not wanting to waste anymore time.

Kagome spoke up, looking at the floor. "That was Sesshomaru, Inuyasha's older brother."

 _Yikes. Touchy subject._ "I'm sorry," Kagura said softly.

Inuyasha let out a sigh. "He wants my sword, the Tetsusaiga. Father left it to me, and left the Tenseiga to him. They have different powers and they affect us differently, as well. That's all ya need to know."

"Ah, that's the third source of power I sensed outside. But, you weren't carrying a sword. Is it here?" she asked.

He smiled. "It's here, but it ain't like anyone will find it 'less I want 'em to. So don't get no stupid ideas."

Kagura rolled her eyes, ignoring his confrontational remark.

"Speaking of stupid ideas," he continued, "you got a lotta nerve doing what you did before. Sesshomaru's not only powerful in a demon sense, Kagura. He's powerful in the human world, too. He coulda killed ya right where you stood and never got so much as a slap on the wrist for it. What'd ya say to him to make him leave like that?"

Kagura blinked. "I didn't really say anything. I just let him know I wasn't interested in joining your dog fight, and he left."

Inuyasha stared at her for a moment before bursting into a short fit of laughter. "You gotta be fuckin' kiddin' me!" he wailed, using the back of his hand to wipe spit from the corner of his mouth.

"Can you stay for dinner? I still owe you for driving me," Kagome spoke up. Kagura knew she was trying to move the subject away from Sesshomaru. She glanced at her petite, rose gold watch.

"No thanks. It's already after 7, I'd better get home. I absolutely hate driving in the dark."

Kagome nodded. "I'm sorry you got involved in all this because of me."

"It's no big deal," she lied.

She was confused and still had a lot of questions, but she knew it should wait until Inuyasha wasn't around, at least. Kagura wasn't the type to let others intimidate her, but she couldn't deny Sesshomaru's power. Judging by Inuyasha's description of him, he seems like the type of man who gets his way. She didn't know what to expect.

* * *

Kagura couldn't help feeling creeped out during her drive home. She felt like she was being watched, although she chalked it up to it being her heightened paranoia. _Damn it, I'm just not gonna think about it anymore. I'm officially blocking it from my mind._ She scrunched her nose, trying to concentrate on the road. When she finally arrived home, she breathed a sigh of relief. _What a shitty day. Time for a bubble bath, some whiskey, and well-deserved sleep._ Kagura pulled into her car lot, locked the car, and walked excitedly along the stone path to the front door of her modest, one bedroom brick house. She'd been renting it off of an ironically lecherous priest named Miroku for almost 2 years now. It had been ridiculously overpriced but he'd lowered her rent after he made the mistake of grabbing her ass during an inspection visit one day. She wondered how long he'd sported the black eye she'd given him that day. Needless to say, he didn't require monthly inspections after that. He even decided to collect the rent via mail. _Home sweet home._ She put her key in the door and smiled at the thought of revisiting her fifth of Jack Daniel's whiskey she'd opened last night.

A sudden, deep voice spoke up from behind her. "Interesting."

Kagura's eyes snapped open wide. She whipped around, letting out a gasp when she saw who the voice belonged to. "W-what are you doing here?"

"No need to be frightened, witch. I want to have a talk with you." said an icy Sesshomaru, who was standing dangerously close to her.

Her heart pounded in her chest. She had been so absorbed in her relief of being home that she hadn't noticed his presence at all. She cleared her throat and stood as tall as her 5'5 frame could muster.

"Come in," she said, trying not to show emotion.

 _Shit, did I really just say that?_ She turned around slowly, letting her brows furrow where he couldn't see. After opening the door, she gracefully stepped in, switching on the tall lamp next to her. She walked slowly through the living room toward the kitchen, her heels clicking loudly against the red, ceramic floor. She cursed herself for not wearing looser clothes. Her purple, button-up blouse felt like it was constricting her breathing. The grey high-waisted, pinstripe skirt she'd reluctantly squeezed into this morning was hugging her hips much tighter than she'd realized. Every step felt like she was being constricted by an anaconda made of cheap, outlet fabric. Her lower legs and chest were the only parts of her that were exposed, but they didn't feel any different. She swallowed a lump in her throat, concentrating on the footsteps behind her. Finally making her way to her black, double-door fridge, she opened the freezer and pulled out her barely touched bottle of Old No. 7 Jack Daniel's. The icy condensation on the glass felt refreshing on her burning palms. She grabbed two square glasses out of the cabinet next to the fridge and sat them on the counter in front of her. She finally turned to face him.

"Drink?" she asked, attempting to smile.

"Your taste is bothersome, but I suppose I'll have some," he condescendingly replied.

He sat at a stool in front of the wall-attached bar in front of her. She poured each of them a glass and sat them on the bar before taking a seat across from him. She grabbed a Rolo chocolate from the round, weaved basket against the wall at the end of the bar. She quickly unwrapped it and popped the soft chocolate into her mouth, savoring it before taking a big swig of whiskey.

"Cut to the chase, Sesshomaru. Why did you follow me here?" she asked, propping her elbows on the bar.

He sipped his drink, twitching his ear in detest at the taste. "If you didn't bathe in sakura scented perfume, it wouldn't have been so easy. But, that's neither here nor there. I need something, and you're going to retrieve it for me."

She threw her head back and laughed, knowing good and well what he meant. "I'm going to retrieve the Tetsusaiga for you?" She narrowed her eyes at him. "How do you propose you're going to make me do it, then? I have no family or friends to speak of, and I would certainly welcome death if it meant my only other option was taking orders from you."

"Witch, you-"

"Kagura," she interrupted. "My name is Kagura, and since you're in my home I suggest you use it."

He smirked before picking up his glass and finishing off the drink in one gulp. "Kagura it is."

A sudden rush of warmth came across her face upon hearing him say her name. She looked down at her claws, trying to distract herself from his handsome features. She hadn't noticed his clothes earlier that day. He was wearing a thin, light grey, v-neck t shirt that clung to every curve of his well-defined arms and chest. His muscles were much bigger than she'd realized. The veins in his forearms bulged out through his skin, all the way to his wrists. He wore a large, white gold Rolex watch with a navy blue background. _Never thought I'd have a rich, gorgeous creature in my house. Too bad he's a total fuckin' creep._ She brought her cup to her lips, looking in his eyes before tilting her head back and finishing what was left in it. He grabbed the bottle of whiskey and refilled their glasses.

"I suppose it would be redundant to threaten the walking dead, don't you think?" he asked, setting the bottle back down on the oak wood of the bar.

She rolled her eyes and picked up her glass, gently rolling the liquid around inside of it. "So, you've come to the conclusion of bargaining with me, correct?"

"As the humans say, 'you scratch my back, I'll scratch yours'," he replied.

She took a drink then ran her tongue slowly along her top lip to clean the whiskey from it. "As much as I'd love to scratch your back, your half breed little brother hasn't wronged me in any way to warrant a betrayal, and I owe you no such favors."

He tapped the claw of his pointer finger on his glass, not looking away from her. The whites of his eyes were turning a light red color. He sat back in his seat before taking another drink. She couldn't tell how angry she'd made him, although she didn't really care. He'd mistook her for the type of deceitful wretch that can be bought or threatened into doing as he says. _Yep, total fuckin' creep. An absolutely gorgeous one, but a creep, nonetheless._ Kagura couldn't take her eyes off of him. She'd never been with a man before, simply because she'd never met anyone that seemed different from the rest; someone who wasn't the same as every other horny, loathsome male on the planet. She'd felt attracted to men in the past, of course, but this was different. Magnetic, almost. On top of that, she was already feeling tipsy from drinking and her inhibitions were dropping with each passing minute.

Kagura finished off her drink. "You should go, Sesshomaru."

He stayed silent for a moment. "Interesting," he finally stated, running his tongue over one of his fangs.

He stood up and straightened his shirt. He had on black jeans that had without a doubt been ironed to perfection. They were loose enough but she could still make out the muscles on his thighs through them. She felt chills run down her neck and arms. He walked over to her, then leaned forward and put a hand down in front of her on the bar. She couldn't move.

"You're a strange woman," he growled, his lips nearly touching her ear.

The breath from his words sent a tingle all the way down her body. He stood up straight, then walked to the door without a word. He mumbled something as he left, but she hadn't been paying well enough attention to make out what it was. She sat there for a long time, even more confused than she'd been earlier that day. She rested her head on the bar. _What the hell was that?_


	3. What's in the box?

"Ridiculous," Sesshomaru mumbled as he closed the door.

He walked slowly to his parked car about a block away from Kagura's house. He unlocked the white 2015 Lamborghini Huracan and hesitated at the driver's door. He stood frozen for a while, the scent of sakura blossoms clinging inside his nostrils. He could still picture her full, dark red lips that had entranced him while she spoke. She was a mere wind demon with no remarkable lineage, yet she'd rendered him powerless in his mission to make use of her. He'd spared her after her wind assault without knowing the exact reason himself. So, he'd concluded that the reason must've been his potential gain in her ability to get close to the Tetsusaiga. This turned out to be false, since he didn't even care at this point that she had refused to assist him. No, it was something else that made her different. He'd been around countless beautiful women other than her throughout his life, feigning to be whatever they thought he wanted in an attempt to seduce him. None of them had even remotely peaked his interest. Even his subordinates at the Taisho company his father had left to him were always quick to grovel and blindly agree with whatever he said or did. Kagura was the polar opposite.

He finally got into his car and put it in drive. The ride home was a short one as she happened to live 5 minutes from his house. He pushed a button on his keychain, unlocking the metal electronic gate at the start of his driveway before continuing. His personal valet was awaiting his arrival near the steps leading to the front door. He got out and tossed the keys to him.

"Welcome home, sir," he said hurriedly, catching the keys and rushing to the car.

Sesshomaru walked on without acknowledging him. The smell of sakuras were still hovering under his nose. The image of Kagura's slim, curvy figure sitting under him as he leaned over her at the bar flashed through his head. _Damn you, wind witch._ He let out a sigh. The alcohol in his system was no where near the amount a demon like him would need to be even slightly drunk, yet he'd behaved completely out of character. He remembered the smell of rising hormones coming from her when he spoke directly into her small, pointed ear. He had barely brought himself to leave. The thought of sleeping with the weak, materialistic women who he usually encountered made his stomach turn, so he'd never given them a chance. Yet, somehow, Kagura had stirred up a storm in him in a matter of roughly 40 minutes. _Kagura.. A festive dance, indeed._ He shoved his hands in his pockets and looked up at his brick mansion, taking in the overwhelming size of it. _How dull._

* * *

Kagura woke up on her still fully-made bed wearing nothing but an oversized Eric Clapton t-shirt, sprawled out on her stomach. She rubbed her eyes and glanced over at the black analog clock on the night stand next to the bed. _Ugh, why am I awake at 9am on a Saturday?_ Saturday and Tuesday were her designated days off from work every week. She usually slept in until noon, if her neighbor's up-and-at-'em husband didn't decide to mow at the break of dawn. She closed her eyes. Just before she drifted back to sleep, her doorbell rang. _Damn it all._ She hopped up and slid on her black, fuzzy house shoes that had two giant googly eyes glued to the top. Her wavy, messy hair hung far down her back and around her shoulders. She stretched her arms, walking slowly out of her bedroom and through the living room to the front door. The doorbell rang again.

"Yeah, yeah, I heard ya the first time," she said through a yawn as she opened the door.

A short, stocky man wearing brown shorts, a brown t-shirt, and brown hat was standing there with a clipboard and a package. The package had a small, white envelope stapled to it.

"Sign here, please," he said, shoving the clipboard and pen towards her.

 _This can't be mine, I haven't ordered anything recently. Hmph, oh well. Happy early birthday to me._ She smiled and signed the name Stella Virgin on the paper and returned the clipboard to him.

"Have a good day, ma'am," he said, handing her the package.

She turned to return inside and closed the door with her left foot while examining the box. There was thick masking tape wrapped around it that the claw on her pointer finger easily sliced through. She plopped down on her black, faux leather loveseat that sat opposite a matching reclining couch. The round, glass table that sat in between the two was littered with junk mail, coasters, and two unopened cereal bars. She cleared a space for the box and gently placed it on the table. She opened the top flaps and pulled out another box that had styrofoam around the corners. The box was black with the word "Yamazakura" written on it with golden Japanese characters in the background. Underneath, it read, "aged 16 years blended whisky" in gold print. A large cherry blossom branch in full bloom stretched across the bottom of the box. The price tag on the bottom listed it at $249.99.

"Holy crap. Two hundred and fifty bucks for.." she read the fluid measurement on the box, "70 centilitres? Let's see, 70 divided by 3... Damn, that's not even 24 fluid ounces!" She held the box up, admiring it. "You must be pretty fancy, huh? Wonder who I stole such a nice gift from," she said nonchalantly.

She placed the box in her lap, ripped the envelope off the side of the delivery package, and pulled out the black card inside. She squinted at the tiny, white print. "8:00. Sesshomaru". She froze, suddenly remembering what had happened after work the day before. She'd been too distracted by the doorbell and then the package to think about anything else. Her heart started to beat faster. _8:00? What the actual hell does that mean? Is he coming here? And what's with the expensive whiskey?_ She frowned. _It must be poisoned. He's paid the Japanese to poison me._ She angrily jumped up and carried the box to her bedroom and set it on the nightstand before throwing herself face first onto the bed. She turned her head to the side. Her hair tickled her ear, sending a tingle down her back. She had a flashback of Sesshomaru's lips breathing against her ear as he spoke. "You're a strange woman," he'd said. Although it'd sounded much more like a growl. Was he angry at the time? She thought about his muscular chest and imagined herself gently biting it with her fangs. _Ridiculous._ She flopped over on her back and stared up at the ceiling for what felt like an hour. Her brain was being flooded by thoughts of Sesshomaru. Finally, her eyes drifted closed and she fell back to sleep.

* * *

Kagura woke up on her fully-made bed (again), wearing nothing but an oversized Eric Clapton t-shirt (again). She glanced at the clock on her nightstand. _Christ, it's 5 already? Wait, what's that box doing the-.._ She let out a low groan. The little black box brought back all the things she'd fallen asleep trying to forget. _Well, if something's happening at 8:00, I'm not going to stick around here like a sitting duck._ She jumped up and went to the bathroom next to her bedroom to take a shower. The hot, steaming water on her skin didn't help with her intrusive thoughts in the least. She imagined him joining her in the shower without saying a word, pushing her up against the wall, and kissing her roughly. She sighed and rested her forehead in her hand. _Et tu, shower?_

She managed to finish showering, towel off, and be fully clothed by 7pm. _Hm, guess I have time to fix my face._ Kagura wasn't terribly self conscious, but she'd gotten so used to wearing her bold, red makeup that she felt naked without it. Once she was done, she checked herself in the rectangular, wall-mounted body mirror in her room. She was wearing her favorite low-cut, black tank top. It buttoned up the middle and separated in an upside down V at the bottom. Her thin, elbow length knitted sweater overtop it was dark beige and hung open in the middle. She'd decided to finally wear her white skinny jeans that still had the price tag attached. It was now August and they'd been hanging in her closet since January, but she hadn't had the heart to wear them, knowing they'd be easily ruined. Her brown lace-up ankle boots were rounded off at the toe and sported a thin, 4 inch high heel. She didn't normally wear heels on her days off, but none of her colorful jogging sneakers or sandals matched the outfit. She did have black ballerina flats, but she still had scars on her heels from the last time she'd worn them. Her dark brown hair was down and hung in loose waves around her shoulders. It shined like a new penny when the light hit it. _Not bad for "the walking dead" if I do say so, myself._ She still wasn't sure why Sesshomaru had called her that, and she was cursing herself for once again finding an excuse to think about him. _Screw this, I just need to eat and get the hell outta here. Then, I'll be able to think straight._

She yanked up her black purse from the seat of her antique rocking chair across from her bed and headed for the fridge. It was almost barren, aside from a glass tupperware bowl with 3 day old spaghetti leftovers in it, a cup of nonfat strawberry yogurt, a nearly empty half gallon container of 2% milk, and half a carton of pineapple orange juice. She knew she had plenty of things in the freezer and cabinet to eat, but cooking it would take too long. She shrugged and walked through the living room, snatching a cereal bar from the glass table as she went towards the door. Her hand was on the doorknob when the doorbell rang. The suddenness of it made her jump. She glanced down at her watch. _Only 7:27._ Still, she was hesitant to open the door. It wasn't often she had visitors, after all. She lifted her hand and placed the back of her fingers against the small black curtain that hung over the two rectangular windows on the door, moving it just enough to peak out of it. There stood Sesshomaru with one hand in his pants pocket. He looked at her through the slit in the curtain and rang the doorbell again.

She gasped and pulled the curtain shut then whipped around, putting her back to the door. He'd already seen her, so hiding inside would only make her seem like a coward. _Of course the bastard came early._ She turned around and grabbed the doorknob. _He's probably here to see if I was dumb enough to drink that obviously poisoned whiskey._ She flung the door open, putting a hand on her hip.

"Surprised?" she asked with a smirk.

He blinked. "Not entirely. I assumed you'd remember how to open the door, eventually," he said, his expression unchanging.

She let her hand drop from her hip. _He doesn't seem shocked at all. Honestly, now that I think about it, it doesn't really make sense for him to try to kill me with poison when he could've done it in person last night._ Kagura was used to her paranoia but this time it was just flat-out silly.

She looked him up and down. He was wearing a short sleeved, black collared t-shirt. The sleeves were tight on his muscular shoulders and arms. She noticed a small "w" shaped symbol on the breast pocket that was indicative of Giorgio Armani's work. His dark grey jeans were smooth and shiny, looking as if he'd purchased them just before he came. He had on semi pointed, black crocodile shoes with three built-in laces at the top. His hair was pulled back in a tight bun on the back of his head, with a few pieces left to dangle around his ears and face. _Wow, this guy can even make a horrid "man bun" look sexy._

"I see you've forgotten how to invite a guest in, as well," he mumbled, squeezing past her through the doorway.

The smell of his sweet cologne distracted her from his intrusion. He walked to the glass table and stopped in front of the opened brown box that she'd left there earlier. She closed the door and turned to watch him.

"Just make yourself at home, then," she said sarcastically.

"I see you received my gift. The UPS driver I'd paid to deliver it brought back a signature that wasn't yours; Stella Virgin to be exact, and I thought he'd made a mistake. I'll have to call his supervisor again and have him rehired," he said, turning around to face her.

She slowly walked closer to him. "I'm not shocked that you'd selfishly have a man fired," she bluntly stated. "I didn't think it was for me so I signed my gag name."

"And I'm not shocked that you'd sign for a package that potentially wasn't yours," he retorted as he took a step towards her. "Although, I must ask," he went on. "Is it true?"

He was only about half a foot in front of her, now. She knew he was asking, quite boldly, if she was still a virgin, like her gag name implied. Her cheeks burned. She could feel herself blushing from embarrassment. _I have got to find a new alias._ She folded her arms and took a step towards him. She had to lift her chin to keep eye contact, as he was at least 7 inches taller than her.

She pursed her lips. "Wanna find out?" she countered, not wanting him to know he'd gotten to her.

He narrowed his eyes and parted his lips as if to speak, but said nothing. He just stared at her. She had said what she did as a joke, but those three words had put her stomach in a knot. Her breathing was getting faster and her skin was hot. Suddenly, he grabbed both of her arms just under her shoulders and pulled her against him. He tilted his head down next to hers, his mouth almost touching her neck. It happened so fast that she hadn't had time to react.

"What if I said yes?" he growled.

One of his long fangs had gently grazed her neck when he spoke, causing a soft moan to escape her lips. Without saying a word, he released her arms and placed one hand on the small of her back, and grabbed a handful of her hair on the back of her head with the other. He bit down on her neck and rolled his tongue against it, pulling her lower body against his. She closed her eyes and let out a loud moan. She used her hand to find the belt loop on his hip and pulled hard on it with two fingers, as if their already smushed-together bodies couldn't get close enough. Her other hand found its way to the back of his neck. She felt as if she'd lost control of her movements and was being controlled by an invisible force. He pulled away from her neck and caught her lips with his, groaning lightly against her mouth when he did. He kissed her hard, sometimes suckling on her lower lip. She was melting in his hands and she couldn't do anything to stop it. It was then that her house phone rang, echoing loudly throughout the silent room. It awoke her from her daze. Her eyes snapped open and she pulled away from him before smacking him hard on the cheek.

* * *

Author's note: the word "Kagura" translates as such: a festive and theatrical dance specifically designated to the Shinto people.

Thank you for the good reviews! I originally started this story as a hobby to work on while my children were busy or sleeping and didn't expect a response out of it. I'm really rusty in writing, so any advice or suggestions for the story are more than welcome.


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